Historic Markers Across Alabama

Vickery's Bridge

From September 5 to September 9, 1950 Lt Grady Vickery was assigned to defend the Namji-Ri Bridge crossing the Nam River. The bridge had been defended by Vickery's considerably reinforced platoon numerous attempts to blow the bridge by the North Koreans was thwarted by Vickery's Platoon. They inflected heavy enemy casualties on September 9, 1950, he had troops on both sides of the bridge. At about 6-7 AM they heard this plane overhead, he made a pass over the bridge circled and dropped a bomb that missed. He made another pass and dropped a bomb on the Center Span. They had defended the bridge for five days and our Air Force blew it up by mistake.

This event is written in numerous history books of the Korean War, with pictures of Lt. Grady Vickery and Coporal Carroll Vogles also pictures of the bridge. Vickery retired from the Army in 1960 with the rank of Captain. He is a member of the Gulf Coast Chapter of the Korean War Veterans Association. He was the first president and the one with the vision for this memorial.

Although this bridge does not resemble the Namji-Ri Bridge, it is named in his honor.